Northwestern University Athletics
Hope Springs Eternal For Defensive Line
4/3/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
April 3, 2003
EVANSTON, Ill. - As part of its ongoing coverage of Spring Football 2003, NUsports.com will take a look at each position on the team and provide a Q&A with the position coach and one of the group's top players. Today, NUsports.com takes a look at the defensive line and talks to Coach Jay Peterson and sophomore Loren Howard (Scottsdale, Ariz./Saguaro).
The unit endured a trial by fire in 2002, with a number of young players being thrown into the mix. But with all four starters returning and quality depth behind them, the position may become one of the Wildcats' biggest strengths in 2003. Find out what the biggest challenge was for Loren Howard coming into college and which defensive lineman Coach Jay Peterson refers to as Baby Huey.
Defensive lineman Loren Howard
NUsports.com: Has it been difficult for you to get back on the playing field, or is it something that you have been looking forward to?
Loren Howard: I've been totally looking forward to it. Like Coach (Randy Walker) always says, 'We're not a weight-lifting team or a track team.' Anytime that you get back on the field, get the pads on and do what we're here to do, it's awesome.
NU: How do you think the experience of having played as much as you did as a true freshman will help you in the upcoming season?
LH: Any time that you play more and get a lot of experience by playing in the Big Ten and going against good offenses, it makes you more prepared for the season. You just continue to get better and better as each year goes along. You mature, you get better technique and you get bigger, faster and stronger.
NU: What was the most difficult transition for you to make coming into your freshman year?
LH: Probably just being away from home. Everyone gets homesick. The worst part for me was after Camp Kenosha. At Kenosha you don't have any time to get homesick, but then we came back (to Evanston) for about a month and there were no students and it was all football. You don't really know your teammates real well yet because you've only been around them for a month. It was an odd transition that everyone goes through after high school. It was something new, but after that everything was cool.
NU: How do you feel that having all four starters on the defensive line back this season will help the team improve?
LH: I think it will help us a ton. We have put in some new defensive things that I like a lot. A lot of the guys have gotten bigger, stronger and faster. Having Colby (Clark) and Luis (Castillo), and even Barry (Cofield) back, who played as a true freshman also and is looking awesome, will really help us. I'm real excited for the upcoming season and finishing the spring and looking ahead to the summer.
NU: You earned a number of individual honors during your first season, including being named a consensus freshman All-American. What are some of your goals for next season?
LH: The team goal is always to go to the Rose Bowl or the Sugar Bowl and win the Big Ten. I have my own personal goals that I like to keep in my head. All of my goals come from our team doing well. In order for me to achieve my goals, personally, we have to achieve our goals as a team. The team comes first, and the ultimate goal is to go to the Rose Bowl and win the Big Ten.
Defensive line coach Jay Peterson
NUsports.com: What has been the emphasis for the defensive line so far during spring practice?
Jay Peterson: Just coming off the football and attacking the line of scrimmage. We need to do a better job of that. That's one thing that after going through the season last year -- we need to come off the football and dent the line of scrimmage. We've got to do that, then all the other things will come.
NU: How do you think that having a number of younger players getting quality playing time last season will help you in 2003?
JP: It should help, but you have to get better when you come back. You can't just say, 'I played, I played.' If you don't get better, then it all goes for naught. All of the guys, to a man, want to improve. We not only want to, we are working to do that. The guys were very young last season, and we aren't using that as an excuse, but I think we grew up a whole lot over the winter.
NU: The team struggled to stop the run at times last season. How do you think the team will improve in that aspect?
JP: We are much more experienced and mature. We are stronger. It's our second year in the scheme. We're not making excuses, but it was the first time that we did it with young guys. We had to crawl before we could walk. We were in games last year; we just needed a leader to step up. Along with getting better physically and mentally, we've got some guys that are taking the bull by the horns and being leaders -- guys like Colby Clark (Austin, Texas/Westlake) and Loren Howard are really coming along.
NU: Has there been anyone that has stood out or has impressed you with their improvement from last season up to now?
JP: These are strong young men. Loren Howard is very, very strong. He's an elite lifter already in our workout routine. Barry Cofield (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) made great strides in the weight room and changed his body. He came in a 280 pounds and he's now at 302 and is running faster and being stronger. I call him Baby Huey. He doesn't know how strong he can be. He just keeps putting more weight on the bar and it keeps going up. We've got to keep pushing him and leading him in the right direction.
Session Two Notes
While the defense was able to limit the offense during 7-on-7 drills that focused on the short passing game, freshman quarterback Alexander Webb (Dallas, Texas/Highland Park) managed to hook up with junior receiver Ashton Aikens (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Country Day) on a 40-yard completion ... Thursday marked running back Noah Herron's (Mattawan, Mich./Mattawan) 21st birthday ... This weekend will be Letterman's Weekend for Northwestern football. Approximately 80 alumni are expected to be in town for the occasion ... Members of the NU's football team will participate in the annual Misericordia Candy Days sale from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. Friday. Student-athletes will be located at the corner of Sheridan Road and Chicago Ave. in Evanston selling candy in order to help the cause ... Offensive lineman Carl Matejka (Houston, Texas/Clear Brook) has decided to forego a fifth season with the Wildcats. He was positioned first at center on the spring depth chart.
